Publications
Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).
Filter Total Items: 4098
Reactive solute transport in streams: 1. Development of an equilibrium- based model Reactive solute transport in streams: 1. Development of an equilibrium- based model
An equilibrium-based solute transport model is developed for the simulation of trace metal fate and transport in streams. The model is formed by coupling a solute transport model with a chemical equilibrium submodel based on MINTEQ. The solute transport model considers the physical processes of advection, dispersion, lateral inflow, and transient storage, while the equilibrium submodel...
Authors
Robert L. Runkel, Kenneth E. Bencala, Robert E. Broshears, Steven C. Chapra
Fate of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate in the Mississippi River Fate of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate in the Mississippi River
The 2 800-km reach of the Mississippi River between Minneapolis, MN, and New Orleans, LA, was examined for the occurrence and fate of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), a common anionic surfactant found in municipal sewage effluents. River water and bottom sediment were sampled in the summer and fall of 1991 and in the spring of 1992. LAS was analyzed using solid-phase extraction...
Authors
C.F. Tabor, L.B. Barber
Occurrence of alachlor and its sulfonated metabolite in rivers and reservoirs of the midwestern United States: The importance of sulfonation in the transport of chloroacetanilide herbicides Occurrence of alachlor and its sulfonated metabolite in rivers and reservoirs of the midwestern United States: The importance of sulfonation in the transport of chloroacetanilide herbicides
Alachlor and its metabolite, 2-[(2',6'-diethylphenyl)- (methoxymethyl)amino]-2-oxoethanesulfonate (ESA), were identified in 76 reservoirs in the midwestern United States using immunoassay, liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The median concentration of ESA (0.48 ??g/L) exceeded the median concentration of alachlor (
Authors
E.M. Thurman, D. A. Goolsby, D.S. Aga, M.L. Pomes, M. T. Meyer
A sample-freezing drive shoe for a wire line piston core sampler A sample-freezing drive shoe for a wire line piston core sampler
Loss of fluids and samples during retrieval of cores of saturated, noncohesive sediments results in incorrect measures of fluid distributions and an inaccurate measure of the stratigraphic position of the sample. To reduce these errors, we developed a hollow drive shoe that freezes in place the lowest 3 inches (75 mm) of a 1.88‐inch‐diameter (48 mm), 5‐foot‐long (1.5 m) sediment sample...
Authors
F. Murphy, W.N. Herkelrath
Trace metal speciation in natural waters: Computational vs. analytical Trace metal speciation in natural waters: Computational vs. analytical
Improvements in the field sampling, preservation, and determination of trace metals in natural waters have made many analyses more reliable and less affected by contamination. The speciation of trace metals, however, remains controversial. Chemical model speciation calculations do not necessarily agree with voltammetric, ion exchange, potentiometric, or other analytical speciation...
Authors
D. Kirk Nordstrom
Evaluating the reliability of the stream tracer approach to characterize stream-subsurface water exchange Evaluating the reliability of the stream tracer approach to characterize stream-subsurface water exchange
Stream water was locally recharged into shallow groundwater flow paths that returned to the stream (hyporheic exchange) in St. Kevin Gulch, a Rocky Mountain stream in Colorado contaminated by acid mine drainage. Two approaches were used to characterize hyporheic exchange: sub-reach-scale measurement of hydraulic heads and hydraulic conductivity to compute streambed fluxes (hydrometric...
Authors
Judson W. Harvey, Brian J. Wagner, Kenneth E. Bencala
Inferring shallow groundwater flow in saprolite and fractured rock using environmental tracers Inferring shallow groundwater flow in saprolite and fractured rock using environmental tracers
The Ridge and Valley Province of eastern Tennessee is characterized by (1) substantial topographic relief, (2) folded and highly fractured rocks of various lithologies that have low primary permeability and porosity, and (3) a shallow residuum of medium permeability and high total porosity. Conceptual models of shallow groundwater flow and solute transport in this system have been...
Authors
P.G. Cook, D. K. Solomon, W. E. Sanford, E. Busenberg, Niel Plummer, R.J. Poreda
Integrated borehole logging methods for wellhead protection applications Integrated borehole logging methods for wellhead protection applications
Modeling of ground water infiltration and movement in the wellhead area is a critical part of an effective wellhead protection program. Such models depend on an accurate description of the aquifer in the wellhead area so that reliable estimates of contaminant travel times can be used in defining a protection area. Geophysical and hydraulic measurements in boreholes provide one of the...
Authors
Frederick L. Paillet, W.H. Pedler
Reactive solute transport in an acidic stream: Experimental pH increase and simulation of controls on pH, aluminum, and iron Reactive solute transport in an acidic stream: Experimental pH increase and simulation of controls on pH, aluminum, and iron
Solute transport simulations quantitatively constrained hydrologic and geochemical hypotheses about field observations of a pH modification in an acid mine drainage stream. Carbonate chemistry, the formation of solid phases, and buffering interactions with the stream bed were important factors in explaining the behavior of pH, aluminum, and iron. The precipitation of microcrystalline...
Authors
R. E. Broshears, R.L. Runkel, B. A. Kimball, Diane M. McKnight, K.E. Bencala
Properties and variability of soil and trench fill at an arid waste-burial site Properties and variability of soil and trench fill at an arid waste-burial site
Arid sites commonly are assumed to be ideal for long-term isolation of wastes. Information on properties and variability of desert soils is limited, however, and little is known about how the natural site environment is altered by installation of a waste facility. During fall construction of two test trenches next to the waste facility on the Amargosa Desert near Beatty, NV, samples were...
Authors
Brian J. Andraski
Distributions and fate of chlorinated pesticides, biomarkers and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediments along a contamination gradient from a point-source in San Francisco Bay, California Distributions and fate of chlorinated pesticides, biomarkers and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediments along a contamination gradient from a point-source in San Francisco Bay, California
The distribution and fate of chlorinated pesticides, biomarkers, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in surficial sediments along a contamination gradient in the Lauritzen Canal and Richmond Harbor in San Francisco Bay was investigated. Compounds were identified and quantified using gas chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry. Biomarkers and PAHs were derived primarily from...
Authors
W. E. Pereira, F. D. Hostettler, J. B. Rapp
Little Ice Age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A. Little Ice Age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.
In the past, ice-core records from mid-latitude glaciers in alpine areas of the continental United States were considered to be poor candidates for paleoclimate records because of the influence of meltwater on isotopic stratigraphy. To evaluate the existence of reliable paleoclimatic records, a 160-m ice core, containing about 250 yr of record was obtained from Upper Fremont Glacier, at...
Authors
D. L. Naftz, R.W. Klusman, R. L. Michel, P. F. Schuster, M.M. Ready, Howard E. Taylor, T.M. Yanosky, E.A. McConnaughey